For the Mariners, and not against the Seahawks. The Bucs rookie chose football over baseball.
Bucs wide receiver Emeka Egbuka catches a 77-yard touchdown pass as Eagles safety Reed Blankenship attempts to block during the third quarter last Sunday.
Bucs wide receiver Emeka Egbuka catches a 77-yard touchdown pass as Eagles safety Reed Blankenship attempts to block during the third quarter last Sunday.
TAMPA — Only a few hundred yards will separate Emeka Egbuka’s past from present Sunday in Seattle.
Safeco Field is where a Mariners-obsessed kid once dreamed of playing after winning a national Pitch, Hit & Run contest at age 8. It’s where he stood near the mound and threw out a ceremonial first pitch to Felix Hernandez.
Across the street at Lumen Field, the Bucs receiver will be tracking footballs against the Seahawks on Sunday afternoon.
The Mariners will be playing in the American League Division Series on Sunday night while Egbuka chases his new dream.
“It’s really cool,” said Egbuka, who grew up in Tacoma, Washington. “... (I) threw out a first pitch there when I was 8 years old. I got to meet all of my favorite players. Pretty much the entire team. I still have signs and memorabilia all over the wall. I think it’s really cool, l’m glad they made the playoffs and got some life for that city, baseball-wise.”
Egbuka is quick to say he didn’t choose football. Rather, football chose him.
![Emeka Egbuka is having quite the rookie season so far, with four touchdown receptions through four games.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 620 413"/%3E)
Emeka Egbuka is having quite the rookie season so far, with four touchdown receptions through four games.
“I’ve definitely thought about that,” Egbuka said. “But God has me here for a reason, I believe. You know the door to baseball in my life closed by no means of my own doing. You know, there was COVID, there was a bunch of things that went into it to where …baseball just made its way out of the life. But I feel like God has me here for a specific purpose. I’m definitely grateful for everything the game of football has given me, too."
In turn, Egbuka has given back to the Bucs.
After four games, he leads the team in receiving with 18 catches for 282 yards and four touchdowns.
Egbuka’s 77-yard touchdown reception from Baker Mayfield helped the Bucs crawl back into last Sunday’s game, pulling them within 24-13 of the Eagles during the third quarter. The catch-and-run was nice, but his concentration of locking the football between two converging defenders was even more impressive.
“It was a little mix of a scramble drill, another mixture of the safety driving hard on the route underneath,” Egbuka said. “I kind of just saw that and decided to take it high and (Mayfield) does it again (with an) incredible throw on the run — side arm — firing it between two defenders. I cannot really ask much more out of him.”
Those are the kinds of plays that have introduced Egbuka’s name into the NFL Rookie of the Year conversation.
![Bucs wide receiver Mike Evans, left, celebrates with wide receiver Emeka Egbuka after Egbuka's touchdown during the season opener in Atlanta.](data:image/svg+xml,%3Csvg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" viewBox="0 0 620 413"/%3E)
Bucs wide receiver Mike Evans, left, celebrates with wide receiver Emeka Egbuka after Egbuka's touchdown during the season opener in Atlanta.
But with Mike Evans out two to three more weeks with a groin injury and Chris Godwin still not 100%, the Bucs could use another target or two.
“He’s going to attract the attention, and he attracted (Eagles cornerback) Quinyon Mitchell, who’s a very good corner in his own right,” head coach Todd Bowles said of Egbuka. ”So, it was a good battle that way. But with Chris (Godwin) coming back, and (Sterling Shepard) making plays, and with Tez (Johnson) coming on, we expect those guys to step up and make more plays, too, to take some of the attention off him.”
Egbuka drew man coverage all over the field versus Philadelphia and received praise from his head coach.
“We have a lot of good, skilled players, so if you want to key into one of them, somebody else is going to have a one-on-one opportunity,” Bowles said. “So our guys are ready for that. We communicate that and different looks and in the preparation of it. But yeah, (Egbuka) is handling it the right way as he always does.”
As you might expect, Egbuka purchased an undisclosed amount of tickets to the Seattle game for friends and relatives.
“There’s no specific number but I know my mom rented out a very large section of the stadium and selling it to all friends and family,” Egbuka said. ”She’s out of tickets, so nobody go ask her.
“The one thing is, if you want to take (a ticket), you’ve got to wear Tampa Bay gear. I got a lot of Seahawks in my family and stuff, but they’ve got to wear Bucs gear if they’re going to go.”
A Mariners hat or two probably would be okay with Egbuka, too.
• • •
Sign up for our Sports Today newsletter to get daily updates on the Bucs, Rays, Lightning and college football across Florida.
Every weekday, tune into our Sports Day Tampa Bay podcast to hear reporter Rick Stroud break down the biggest stories in Tampa Bay sports.
Never miss out on the latest with your favorite Tampa Bay sports teams. Follow our coverage on X and Facebook.
Join the Conversation
Anyone can view a sampling of recent comments, but you must be a Times subscriber to contribute. Log in above or subscribe here.
Conversations are opinions of our readers and are subject to the Community Guidelines.